Combined pneumatic and cushion tire.



No. 638,589. Patented Dee. 5, |899. L. DE F. MUNGER.

COMBINED PNEUMATIC AND CUSHION TIRE.

(Application led May 11. 1899.)

(No Model.)

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LOUIS DE F. MUNGER, OF NET `YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO THE NATIONAL WHEELAND TRACTION COMPANY, OF NEW YORK.

COMBINED PNEUMATIC AND CUSHION TIRE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 638,589, dated December5, 1899.

Application filed May 1l, 1899. Serial No. 716,393. (No model.)

To tu whom t may concer-n.-

Beit known that I, LOUIS DE F. MUNGER, of New York, (Brooklym) county ofKings, State of New York, have invented a new and use- 5 ful CombinedPneumatic and Cushion Tire, g

'xo bine the functions of both pneumatic and solid-rubber tires for thepurposes more fully hereinafter set forth.

It is desirablein a pneumatic tire, particularly for heavy tractionpurposes, that means x5 be provided for the protection of the tire frominjury in case of puncturing and deflating and also against the suddenabnormal strain or shock of excessive pressure at one point, as when thewheel meets a sharp obstruction,

2o as well as against the destructive strain of overload.

To this end my invention consistsin adapting to the ordinary pneumatictire substantially circular in cross-section oppositely-disposedinterior buffer ribs or cushions, one being adjacent the tread of thetire and the other the inner periphery of the tire which lies in theWheel-rim. These buffer-ribs are preferably of about the same form anddimensions and have adjacent parallel faces sufficiently separated to benormally out of contact. They are, however, positioned near enough toeach other so thatif the tire strikes against a sharp obstruction itwill indent until the ribs are brought into contact with each other, andthus receive the load in. the same manner as a solid-rubber tire for thetime being Without permitting the tire to 'entirely collapse, so as toinjure its sidewalls. The ribs 43 therefore serve the same function inrespect to the tire that elastic cushions do for springvehicles.Similarly in case of the deflating of the tire or when the vehicle isoverloaded the ribs will be brought into contact and will 45 carry theload like solid-rubber tires without injury to the tube or rim of theWheel. It is further to be noted that the mass of the outer rib servesto thicken the tread of the tire, so as to serve as an additionalprecaution As a further safeguard the inner surface of the outer rib iscovered with an impervious lining or coating vulcanized to the innerwall of the tube on each side. Thus the tire has the double protectionof the ordinary inner tube outside of the outer rib and the connectedcoating or lining for the other face of the rib. Hence if a tire bepunctured through the liningtube air cannot pass through the porous massof the rib, be cause of its impervious lining.

My invention is especially adapted to a pneumatic tire, incontradistinction to a cushion-tire, and must have on its innerperiphery the air-tight lining referred to, which is composed of aboutninetyfive per cent. of pure rubber, and this inner lining in my tiremust be formed on and be substantially an integral part ofthe tireitself in order to maintain a rigid connection of the buifers and tireand hold them in rigid relative position, so as t0 prevent collapsingand distortion of the tire and prevent the buffers from sliding over andcrushing down Within the spaces around the buffers, and the spaces onthe sides of the buffers must extend to the inner edges of the tire inorder to maintain at all times air-spaces around the buffers.

The preferred form of the ribs is shown in the drawing, in which theadjacent faces are shown flat, although,'if desired, a different contourmay be given so long as the surfaces are parallel, the load or pressurebeing thus distributed over the entire area of their adjacent faces whenbrought into contact.

The accompanying drawing forms part of this specification and shows myimproved tire in cross-section. It is of the ordinary type,substantially circular in cross-section and with side Walls ofsubstantially uniform thickness. The exterior' layer of material isindicated by 1.

2 represents the layers of fabric, and 3 the inner or air-tight tube. j

A land B, respectively, represent the cushion or bufferribs,oppositelydisposed and longitudinally extended in thetire and made integral withthe tire. The rib A is arranged adjacent to the tread and the rib Badjacent to the inner periphery of the tire or the wheel* rim 7. Theinnersurface of the rib Ais pref-l erably provided with the imperviouslining 4, vulcanized on either side tothe tube 3 and ICO of likematerial, as an additional safeguard against leakage from a puncturethrough the tread of the tire.

The dotted lines illustrate the distortion of the tire when by reason ofoverloador defiation of the tire the buffer-ribs are brought intocontact and serve the function of a solidrubber or cushion tire. l

By my construction a perfectly-sealed pneumatic tire of the ordinaryclosed tubular shape and having the usual continuous airspace therein isformed, and in my tire the air-spaces formed at the sides of the buffersand between the same and the edgesof the tire correspond exactly to theair-cushion that is formed in an ordinary pneumatic tire when the sameis under pressure and the central part depressed, so as to leavesupportingcushions of air on either side of the central part. Hence itwill be seen, owing to the form and size of the air-spaces, that thehutfers will not destroy the cushioning power of the air, but theresiliency and buoyancy of the ordinary pneumatic tire will be retained.My invention therefore consists, essentially, of improvements in apneumatic tire and diers materially from those cushion-tires in which asmall interior hole is provided to give a greater resiliency to thetire, as the spaces in the latter are provided to enable the tire toyield and.v collapse, While the spaces in my tire are provided tocontain air under pressure, by means of which the too-ready yielding ofthe tire is prevented, and which spaces correspond to the air-space ofan ordinary pneumatic tire. My tire differs, however, from the ordinarypneumatic tirein providing by the addition of the buffer a thickenedtread-surface which will not atten out to as great a degree and willtherefore oer less frictional resistance to the ground. V

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is 1.Apneumatic,non-collapsible,cylindrical, continuous tire providedwith'interior buifers on the inner periphery of the air-tube, one bufferadjacent to the tread of the t-ire and the other directly oppositethereto, and airspace's between and on both sides of lsaid buffersextending entirely across the tire tothe air-tube, substantially asdescribed.

2. A pneumatic continuous tire circular in cross-section provided withan air-tube and interior buers, one being adjacent to the tread of thetire and the other adjacent tothe rim, said buffers made integral withthe saidtube or inner liningof the tire, substantially as described.

3. Acombiued pneumatic and cushion tire, comprising an outer tube, itsimpervious linin ga pair of cushion-ribs arranged within the saine, oneadjacent the tread and the other adjacent the wheel-rim and havingparallel adjacent faces, and an impervious lining. or ccating coveringthe inner surface of the outer rib and joined to the lining of the tube,substantially as and for the purposes specified.

Signed at New York city, New York, this-9th day of May, 1899.

LoUIs DE F. MUNGER.

Vitnesses:

AUGUSTUS LEE, J r., T. D. MIERWIN.

